Great Way to Learn XHTML/CSS

The link above is to a great book for learning XHTML/CSS. I bought it for my daughter, as an introduction to building web pages and sites - and then I read it.

First, and most importantly, it is technically up to date and accurate. The information presented will help the reader build web pages and sites.

Next, it is really fun to read. I read the entire book, which is something I very rarely do with technical books (usually I use them only for reference). I confess I didn’t do the exercises, I write enough code as it is.

Finally, I learned the following:

  • The difference between block and inline elements, and their relationships
  • The value of putting height and width attributes on img tags
  • How float and clear really work, and the impact of them on the pages, especially pages which may be viewed with mobile devices
  • Other finer points of positioning page elements
  • How to center pages in the browser

If you are new to the web, it is a great book to start with. If you are more of a software engineer than a web page coder, it can really help you understand the front-end.